Children's dentistry
NHS check-ups for children are free. Bring them early, bring them often, and it stays boring — which is the goal.
How the first visit to the children's dentist goes
Dr Anna Kowalczyk leads the children's side of the practice. She sees most of the under-16s who come through the door and she trained further in paediatric dentistry after qualifying.
Here is the whole appointment, in order, so you can tell them what is going to happen before you get here. Children cope with almost anything they have been told about in advance.
- 01
You ring, we book a morning
First appointments go early in the day when children have most patience. Tell us their age and whether they have been before — that is all we need.
- 02
They sit in the chair, or on you
Either is fine. Plenty of three-year-olds do the first visit on a parent’s knee and move to the chair the time after.
- 03
Anna counts their teeth
Out loud, so they can hear what is happening. It takes about a minute and it is the entire clinical content of the appointment.
- 04
She has a look, and that is it
We do not do treatment at a first visit unless a child is in pain and wants it sorted. If something needs doing we tell you and book it separately.
- 05
They go home
Fifteen minutes, start to finish. If they leave thinking the dentist is boring, the appointment did exactly what it was for.
What we won't do
-
We will not hold a child still
If they will not open their mouth, we stop and try again another day. Forcing one appointment buys a filling and costs twenty years of avoidance.
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We will not treat on the first visit without a reason
Unless they are in pain, nothing happens beyond a look. Getting used to the room comes first.
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We will not tell them it will be fun
It is a check-up. Children know when they are being sold something, and it costs you their trust as well as ours.
From what age
From about six months, or whenever the first tooth turns up — whichever comes first. There is no lower limit and nobody has ever been told they came too early.
Early visits are not really about teeth. They are about a small person learning that this room is somewhere dull that they visit twice a year, before there is anything that needs doing. That is far easier to establish at two than at nine with toothache.
If they're already frightened
It happens, and usually something specific caused it. We book a longer slot and we are happy to do a wasted journey on purpose: come in, look at the room, meet Anna, sit in the chair if they want to, go home. Nothing else. Then come back.
Teenagers
Braces
We do not straighten teeth here. We check whether it is worth looking at and refer to an orthodontist if it is — most referrals happen between eleven and fourteen, once the adult teeth are through.
Mouthguards
Anyone playing Gaelic games, hurling, camogie, rugby or hockey should have a custom one. The boil-and-bite sort from the sports shop moves when it matters. A guard is £65 and two short visits; a front tooth lost at fifteen is a lifetime of dentistry.
Energy drinks
The damage we see most in fifteen-year-olds is not from sweets. It is from energy drinks and fizzy juice sipped over hours — the acid never leaves the teeth long enough for them to recover. Drinking it in one go with a meal does far less harm than nursing a can all afternoon.
What it costs
Free
- Check-ups for under-18s, on the NHS
- Fluoride varnish at a routine check-up
- Ringing to ask a question
- Moving an appointment, given a day's notice
Not free
- Treatment beyond a check-up falls into the usual NHS bands
- Mouthguards, which are private
- Anything cosmetic, which is private at any age
Questions parents ask
How old does my child have to be?
There is no minimum. Bring them from the first tooth or the first birthday, whichever comes first. Early visits are about getting used to the room, not about treatment.
What happens at the first appointment?
They sit in the chair, Anna counts their teeth and has a look, and they go home. We do not do treatment at a first visit unless a child is in pain and wants it dealt with.
Will you hold my child down?
No. If a child does not want to open their mouth, we stop and try again another day. Forcing a child through an appointment buys one filling and costs twenty years of avoiding dentists.
Can I stay in the room?
Yes, always. Some children do better with a parent in the chair beside them and some do better without — you know which yours is, and either is fine with us.
What does it cost?
Check-ups for under-18s are free on the NHS. If treatment is needed we tell you what it costs before we book it.
Book the whole family in one call.
Tell us how many of you there are and we'll put the appointments together so it's one trip, not four.